Furniture store to occupy former Toys R Us space in South Portland

Bernie & Phyl's plans to open its first Maine showroom across from the Maine Mall this spring.

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A Boston-area furniture store plans to take over the former Toys R Us space across from the Maine Mall.

Bernie & Phyl’s Furniture will open its first Maine showroom this spring, according to trade publication Furniture Today.

The company has acquired the 44,000-square-foot former Toys R Us location, and plans to open over Memorial Day weekend.

In an interview, CEO Larry Rubin said he expected the market would be very good for Bernie & Phyl’s, which has eight other New England locations. He said the store in Newington, New Hampshire, draws a lot of customers from Maine, indicating it was time to push north.

Rubin told Furniture Today that the company expects the store to generate about $15 million in annual sales, and should help push the company’s total annual sales to $150 million once it has a full year of business in the new market.

The South Portland store will feature Bernie & Phyl’s primarily midpriced assortment from lines such as Klaussner, England, Ashley, Tempur Sealy International and Southern Motion.